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Anime poster commission for 
With her request/consent, I was given the ability to write for this piece. It got a bit longer
than I originally intended, but it worked out in the end. I won't pretend myself an expert on
WoW lore, so I try not to delve to much into the intricacies of cannon information. For those
of you who are more WoW savvy, don't bother with your torches and pitchforks chuckle
__________________________________________________________________________
Through the canopy of blues and gold he walked, an envoy sent from distant lands where only
the foolhardy dared to tread. It was no mistake those who dared to enter his blighted homeland
never returned. There was no sheer coincidence nor the irony of some radical accident to explain
for their departure from this world. His kind had endured many names through the years, and by
extension, he himself subjugated to their calling. Organized betrayal and bloodshed it were. Twas
a way of their life now as it was then, the only thing that had changed was the source of this flow
of power that they so craved. The object of this desire was interpreted differently by many persons
across their world... magic, essence, a soul, the list goes on. One thing was paramount, however.
With their once able source of this power gone, so did the morality they once abided. For you see,
living creatures harbored this magic they so desired, embedded and engraved into them not unlike
a man and his soul. And, so naturally, any passerby was a commodity and not to be taken for granted.
Blood Elves is what they called them. Bastardized echoes of the proud race they once were.
Beautiful facades hiding a grotesque reality behind pale eyes and seducing smiles. For many it is
one act from a single man of power that can set the destiny or ruin for their people. For the Blood
Elves it was much more than that. It was not one, nor two or three misguiding’s that led his race
astray. Nay, his people in their entirety were responsible. No single man, woman, or child were
blameless in this desire, this insatiable hunger for magic. Treaties withered... friendships lost... trade
diminished... and resentment grew in a smoldering blaze. Thus, here he was, years after all that
resentment between his people and the humans; sent by his lord in the hopes to rectify relations.
Truth be told this was a farce, he knew it to be so. Merrily an act to keep up what appearances they
had left that were still, somehow, untainted from their reputation. This prospect seemed more like
a fool’s errand than any sort of political significance, yet... it delivered him the means to leave the
confines of his plagued homeland and see the outside world he so dearly missed.
It was not uncommon for other races to venture into Stormwind city. Indeed, many a traveler and
merchant strolled through these cobblestone roads and marble columns to spend their brief moments
of stability before braving the wilderness outside the city gates. A blood elf, however? The thought
alone was completely unheard of. As he silently made his way through the bustling streets, people
parted and shared their distaste. Faces curled in disgust or fear, exposing the hatred and distrust he
knew he would receive. Men of honor, knights of the brotherhood watched from the balconies-- their
arrows pointed and ready to strike him with any misstep. The whole arrangement was overzealous,
comical to him in fact. To point an arrow so boldly at an elf of any kind seemed a waste of effort in his
eyes, but he digressed.
"I applaud you for the warm welcome, knights of Stormwind. Your master has trained you well."
The blood elf stopped for a moment, taking a brief glance at the slanted visors glaring above him.
"I don't presume any of you would be willing to call a carriage so that I may arrive to my destination
more readily. Or perhaps that is a luxury here and I am deemed unworthy?" The men above gave him
no reply, their fingers unmoved from their rigid positions as they held firm around the arrows
feathered base. "No response? Ah, I see... curse the blood elf for being so prude as to ask for a meager
carriage ride to the castle. So be it then. If your master is in no hurry to fetch, then I will accommodate
him and enjoy my leisure time thoroughly..."
In a swift movement the blood elf threw his body over the stone wall aside him, nimbly evading the view
range of the knights behind. A series of voices erupted as word caught like a flame and grew through
the quarter. The clambering of heavy steeled boots and armor quarreled through the cobblestone streets,
his elf ears catching every sound as he used their metallic ring to sneak his way through the maze of
narrow alleyways.
"You'd think I'd of just kidnapped the heir by all this commotion. Good heavens these men are so devoted."
The blood elf peered behind him as the steps mistakenly parted from his location, the echoes of church
bells chiming in the near distance. "They know I'm here as an envoy; as if I would be so foolish to do
any crime within these walls." As he thought these words his attention was immediately exchanged to the
figure ahead of him, his feet turning abruptly as the speed of his body drifted across the stone ground.
Glowing eyes not unlike his own bore into him, his reflection quilted across the edifices of this stranger’s
armor. A night elf stood here, unnerved by all the rabble of the bustling city.
"Not all of us in the brotherhood are human, my friend."
"Good, that makes for more sport” Using his cloak the blood elf maneuvered his hand in a manner
that made him appear to grab at his sword, of course this was simply an illusion of intimidation—one
that seemed to have ill-effect on his opposer, much to his consternation.
The night elf turned his head, stepping aside as his armored arm pointed in the direction adjacent
to him. "If you run down this path, you will find a cathedral near the end of the gate. Follow the bells.
Stay there until things have quieted down, then I will personally escort you to the palace."
With a chuckle, the blood elf slowly walked past him before adjusting his body for a sprint. His
gloved hands pushed the length of his cloak behind him, seeing that his tactic of intimidating this
elf was of no use. Each step he drew a further distance between them, his gaze never averting.
"Why on earth would you assist me?"
"I'm not doing this for your sake. Your little escapade has soiled the seamless peace of our day to
day lives here in the city. The more you run about, the more you seem like a mouse being trailed by cats.
I know you aren't so idiotic as to do any harm considering the nature of your mission, but your fun is
no better substitute. So, please follow my instructions and do as your told so we don't deliver you on a leash."
"How noble of you, sir knight..." the blood elf feigned, bowing with a coy smile before running down
the suggested path.
"Besides, seeing my fellow knights of human decent run around in such disarray over something so
trivial is admittedly a bit comical in its own right." While the night elf did not voice this so openly, he
knew well that his instructed would hear as their sense of hearing was far more superior. The brief
statement elicited a hastened laugh from the evading blood elf, who did not expect such a base remark.
The thought yielded to gratify the gaiety in him,
"We are not so different, you and I."
The narrow pathway opened up ahead, the ringing of the bells growing louder; and with it, the sounds
of men spotting him from the markets down the road. As fast as his feet could carry, he did not reach the
stone doors in time. A haughty voice spoke from behind as the knights circled the cathedral, the blood elf
halting before the door. His golden eyes glared over his shoulder to the knights shod in blue. A particular
knight on his horse stood valiantly within them, his presence daunting. It would seem the turbulence he
had made did not go unnoticed by the captain, if his feathered helmet was any indication.
"You are under arrest. Lay down your arms and proceed with us quietly, blood elf."
"Under what charge be that could warrant my detainment?"
The captain tilted his head to the side, a twinge of irritation in his voice at the fractious retort "That
hardly matters for one in your current circumstance."
"My circumstance?" The blood elf peered to the circle of knights around him, continuing to notice
their judging gaze through the slanted eye holes within their steel helmets. Voices caught adrift,
speaking to him plainly-- but he paid them no mind. Instead, his attention took to the night elf in the
distance. With a silent turn the night elf shook his head, eyes resolute. No words had to be said to
understand its meaning. At the same time, the words spoken so callously before him finally reached
his ears; the last hitting him with a sort of potency and open threat that-- he knew should he reply,
would define the rest of his time here.
“What will you do then, blood elf? Will you come quietly, or must we bring you by force?”
"Ah... because I am a blood elf. You needn’t say more, dear captain of the guard…" The blood elf
straightened his back, facing the ring of men to his front. "I plead..." his eyes scanned to the left and
right, the knights tightening their grip around the base of their swords while others to the quiver of arrows.
"I plead... sanctuary." With a mordant smile the blood elf took a step behind himself, arms bound
within his cloak as his back paved open the cathedral doors. His body stepped into holy ground,
enveloped by the welcoming shadows of the church halls.
The captain reared upon his steed in contempt, his men taking to their weapons "Detain that barbarian
at once, I want his hands in chains!"
"My lord..." the night elf spoke suddenly from behind, the knights turning to face him.
With a grimace the captain motioned for his horse to turn, "What say you? Speak up, elf!"
"It is my understanding that those who plead sanctuary on holy ground before the eyes of the church,
regardless of title or tithe, are children of the Light. We have no jurisdiction here. His body and soul are,
for the time being, under the churches care."
The weight of eyes fell upon the esteemed captain as the night elf spoke thus, law and regulation
whispering against his brittle composure. As if aware of his conflicted nature, the night elf continued--
"You wouldn't go against the church and enter holy ground to take a man whose plead sanctuary,
would you?"
A brief silence encompassed the circle of the captain and his subordinates, their actions hesitating in
anticipation of their lord’s command. To defy law and order... to defy the church... no, that would mark a
stain on his reputation he could not ill afford to lose. "Blasted snake...! He was wise to come here... perhaps,
to wise..." Angrily he whipped the reigns of his horse, the beast trotting to the night elf’s side. Cumbersomely
he heeded to the elven man beside him, his grip tightening around the leather reins within his grasp "We will
speak of this later, night elf."
"I look forward to it, captain." Those unforgiving blue eyes seemed to mock him, and despite his position,
he made no effort to remedy that. To wise, indeed. Yet, there was nothing more to be done. This, the elf was
well aware and the same could be said for his higher-ranking officer.
"Tch…!" the captain turned to his men "I want one group of men stationed on the block. If he takes one
step out of that cathedral, detain him. The rest of you, to me! We have other matters to attend to. Move out!"
The group of men bowed in unison "Yes, Captain!"
As the sounds of men in steel drifted, the blood elf backed away from the cold door within the church.
With each step his footsteps clacked against the tiled floor, the sound echoing through the halls. Thoughts
came and went in the bowels of his mind, but it seemed fruitless to think too much on them. With a soft
exhale he drove his fingertips against his forehead, drifting his hands through his rose-colored hair as he
composed himself before exuding a sigh. "I suppose the men of Stormblood truly are devoted after all..."
White marble statues of various religious significance towered above him on either side. Their stone
like observance seemingly more potent than anything any man could conjure. Stained glass coiled with
depictions of woe and discord littered the halls, each different from the last-- and, as they continued, so
did the story they told. Ivory colored candles glistened against the many reflective surfaces, glowing here
and there as if guiding him to the wall of frosted glass ahead. As he approached the rays of pale day emitting
from the glass, he noticed an oddity laying idly against the floor. A lavish shoe lay there. A small and well
ornamented one at that; smaller even than the base of his hand. With tender care he placed the garment
upon his palm, taking notice of the many threadworks as he crouched upon the floor. Without an utterance
of sound, he suddenly lifted from the ground. He was not alone.
"It is impolite to stare..." The blood elf hissed, shoe in hand. Quickly he turned to the column behind him,
his nimble body sliding to the stone cylinder before his observer had a chance to respond. It was a girl who
stood there, a small and fragile thing he noticed. His eyes trickled down to the maiden below him, her hands
tightly intertwined with the veil upon her head as if hiding herself from him. A child it must be, he concluded.
"Is this your shoe?" He asked in a less intimidating tone. From beneath her veil, he could see the length of pale
shimmering hair peak from under its satin cage; a color that reminded him fondly of the wheat fields in a time
of old.
"Yes..." her soft voice uttered through the cold air between them. He did not care for the briefness of
that answer.
"Don't you think it would serve its purpose better if it had your foot to fill it?"
The girl fidgeted behind her veil; her body still turned away from him. The clothes she wore were
elaborate, and not ones usually worn by children of any class which perturbed him. The silhouette of her
waist, the embellishments on her sleeves... something about her was off, though he couldn't quite place his
finger upon it. Perhaps there was more about the people of this land he did not fully comprehend than he
had previously assumed.
"If you want your shoe back, why don't you take it, then?" He was a blood elf. In the back of his mind,
he was sure that was the reason for her hesitance. He disturbed her, disgusted her... it is why she watched
him from the shadows at a distance, surely that was so. That as he is scared even a child unaware of his past,
somehow-- unlike before, bothered him to some degree.
"I-I do want it back... but, I... I'm not supposed to talk to strangers..."
The blood elf lightly took her shoulder with his free hand. "Dear girl, I have no intention of harming you,
nor do I seek anything from you that you are not ready to give. Even your company is something I would
not take against your will. I simply want to return what is yours back to you. To judge a man based solely
on his appearance is unkind."
For a moment the girl was quiet, as he felt she must have been pondering over his words. Finally, after
a few moments of thought, she stood away from the stone pillar. With a turn she faced him. What he saw
before him came as a surprise. Twas no young girl who stood there, it was a woman in fact... albeit a small
and demure one. His eyes first fell upon her feet, then to her waist, where he noticed the ample shape of her
breast which surely no child could ever have. His gaze then averted to her pale green skin, then to her ears
that rest against her shoulders. Much to his dismay this was no girl of human blood at all, nor even one of
elvish parentage. With a slow raise of her petite hands, she pinched the fabric of her veil away from her face.
Fogged over eyes that still held some form of beauty despite their inability to see embraced him.
"I do not judge a man by his appearances, my lord. I judge a man on the base of his convictions
and character."
She was a goblin, and a very lovely specimen that much he could gather. "You are... I was not anticipating,
rather... I did not expect..."
The maiden turned her cheek, as if wounded by his shock "I am sorry I am not what you were expecting...
I hope I did not offend you. I was not staring... to do so would be a dream for me."
Her words comforted him, as much as they pierced into his heart. A goblin maiden without the blessing
of sight, here in Stormwind. Two strangers in a distant land neither belonged. For once in his long-life fate
seemed to finally have a form of meaning. "On the contrary... my lady," With a soft gesture he took her hand,
placing his lips against her skin without a shred of regret "-it is I whom have diminished you unfairly. Please
understand it is not because I am disappointed with you. I am relieved." He pulled away from her hand,
narrowing his gaze "I must ask however, why is a maiden such as yourself here? The people of this land
are not keen on my kind, let alone yours. For what reason would you be here in this place?"
"Your kind, unwelcome…?" She took her hand to his face, guiding the tips of her fingers against his cheek,
then to his ears and brow line. To say it caught him by surprise would be an understatement, but he did not
turn from her exploration. "I must apologize, I cannot see. I use other ways to imagine how one appears...
you are a blood elf it seems..." her lips curled into a small smile, "That puts my mind at ease."
He had not heard such words from a stranger in a long time. A numb sensation grew from within his chest
at the sound against his wishes. "My question remains unanswered, my lady."
"Ah... yes." The girl took a few steps toward the glass ahead of them, her dress drifting behind in a slight
train "I am here on business with my father's. They are like you, you see... of blood elf decent, I mean to say.
I'm adopted... it is a rather long story, one that I rather not speak here. We are envoys of the church sent to
these lands in the hopes we can reunite the faith as was always intended. After all, we are all children of the
Light aren't we...?" She clasped her hands together, eyelashes fluttering against the pale light that only
highlighted her equally pale opal-like complexion. "As you have gathered, I am not one who garners well
received attention. I am frail... sightless... never mind the fact I am not human or otherwise. It was the wish
of my fathers that I remain here in this place while they attend to political matters..."
"This place, being the church?" The blood elf questioned.
"Yes, that is correct."
A part of that compromise seemed cruel to him, to keep her away in this quiet place; but he knew its
reasoning unfortunately well. The thought occurred to him to wonder what could be worse, having the
ability to see those judge you from afar, or to feel that judgment instead? The answer remained uncertain.
His train of thought was broken as she continued, a hint of embarrassment in her voice "To be truthful,
I heard the commotion outside and was unsure exactly who or what kind of person had ventured in here to
escape the knights. So... I thought it best to hide..." With a shy twirl of her leg, she regarded her bare foot
with modesty "In my effort to be quick, I regret I lost my shoe... such a humiliating thing to have a stranger
find it and return it back to me. I'm terribly sorry you had to go through all the trouble!"
Amidst her fray he calmly took her hand, guiding her to the velveteen booth close by. "Now, now, there
is no need to worry. Something like this is hardly a bother. Believe me, I have had the misfortune of touching
far worse things."
"Oh, like what?" The maiden cocked her head to the side unaware of the severity of that curious statement.
"Ah... perhaps not something to say under the eyes of the holy ones..."
The goblin maid let out a slight laugh, "Ah so that's it is it? What a tenacious lord."
"I haven't the faintest notion of what you mean, but I'm not that depraved dear girl!"
Two strangers getting along, both from different worlds yet all the same. He was not aware other envoys
had been tasked with coming here as he had, but perhaps it was foolish to consider himself special. Had he
never caused such a ruckus or encountered that night elf he never would have stumbled upon this cathedral
or the girl within it. Was it truly fate or merrily coincidence? A thought he would surely mull over later. For
now, only one thing seemed important...
"Pardon me for asking, and do let me know if I am overstepping my bounds... but, as I am confined to
this place for some time... it seems only fitting I ask... what is your name?" He knelt upon one knee, taking
ahold of her foot in his hand as her dainty leg extended before him. There was a slight resistance to her as
he did so, but at his kind words and careful nature did she gauge he was in fact being genuine and of service
to her.
"My name is Uriele, my lord. Uriele Lightweaver. And... your name, kind sir?"
With a smile, he slid her foot into the shoe. A calmness overtook him, a sensation he had not felt in many
a time "Glyss Everglow, my fair lady..."
“It is a pleasure to meet you.”
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1646 x 993px
File Size 2.02 MB
I am in love with everything in this pieces! The amazing quality of the illustration and all the feelings it conveys, the writing that was so beautifully done and captivating, the chemistry between the characters in both the story and the piece, i'm simply in love and swoon over my feet! ♡♡♡
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